Louis J. Hoebel

Multivehicle reconnaissance route and sensor planning

A novel approach is described for the real-time coordination of multivehicle teams to perform reconnaissance and surveillance missions. Our approach incorporates a powerful algorithmic framework, which we have used to develop dynamic route and sensor planning algorithms for multivehicle team coordination. Furthermore, this framework allows the development of a class of algorithms to match the extent of communication and coordination permissible for the particular mission. We have implemented a prototype of this framework and presented results for the case when full coordination between the teammates is allowed.

Integrating maintainability and data development

In this paper we described a new and innovative maintainability-engineering tool being developed by GE-GRC, AFRL and Lockheed Martin (LM). The tool employs modeling, simulation, information composition and virtual prototyping to allow an easier analysis of service related issues early in the design. The resulting coupling of the design and service data promote a concurrent development of preliminary designs and maintenance manuals, resulting in a truly maintenance oriented design approach. The prototype tool is in development and will be beta-tested on several commercial and military systems. Implementation challenges discussed include a need for user-defined constraints on the disassembly planner and difficulties mapping design data to domain information: Future directions for this research will examine using the technology for maintenance task analysis, change impact analysis and job-level work scope planning. Finally, we described an implementation strategy for technology transition including an initial Illustrated Parts Catalogue (IPC) generation capability and maintainability studies on components of the GE Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) as well as other GE engines.

An automated approach and virtual environment for generating maintenance instructions

Maintenance of complex machinery such as aircraft engines requires reliable and accurate documentation, including illustrated parts catalogs (IPCs), exploded views, and technical manuals describing how to remove, inspect, repair and install parts. For new designs, there are often time constraints for getting a new engine to the field, and the available documentation must go with it. Authoring technical manuals is a complex process involving technical writers, engineers, as well as domain experts (mechanics and designers). Often, several revisions are required before a manual has correct IPC figures and maintenance instructions. Compounding this problem is that technical writers often perform tasks better suited for computers, leading to increased costs and error.In this demonstration, we describe a new framework to generate maintenance instructions from solid models (Computer Aided Design/CAD data) and then validate these instructions in a haptics-enabled virtual environment. Our approach utilizes natural language processing techniques to generate a presentation-independent logical form, which can be transformed for display within the virtual environment. During the development of the system, task analyses, human models, usability studies, and domain experts were used to gain insights. The end result is a more integrated and human-centered process for developing technical manuals, providing higher quality documents with less cost.

A NOVEL APPROACH FOR THE COORDINATION OF MULTI-VEHICLE TEAMS

This paper describes a novel approach for the real-time coordination of multi-vehicle teams to perform reconnaissance and surveillance missions. Our approach incorporates a powerful algorithmic framework, which we have used to develop dynamic route and sensor planning algorithms for multi-vehicle team coordination. Furthermore, this framework allows the development of a class of algorithms to match the extent of communication and coordination permissible for the particular mission. We have implemented a prototype of this framework and presented results for the case when full coordination between the teammates is allowed.

Integrating graphics and abstract data to visualize temporal constraints

Traditionally, visualization is the transformation of data into information that can be rendered using computer graphics techniques. Visualization combines techniques and representations from computer graphics, computer vision, and image processing. In distributed and hierarchical operations and processes, such as for command and control or logistics and planning, visualization is the central mechanism for communicating the state of the situation and operations. The major challenge of visualization is to filter, tailor, and present the information in compact forms that can be efficiently created and displayed. In contrast to many visualization problems, these domains have what seems to be an overwhelming variety and quantity of information. We address aspects of this problem with the graphical visualization of abstract temporal information in a concrete spatio-temporal framework.

MTA -a tool for automated task analysis and lifecycle support

Efficient and cost effective maintenance is a key to success in the aircraft engine business today. Airlines are making money when their aircraft are in the air and are in turn losing money when engines are in the shop. For large-scale systems such as an aircraft engine, system maintenance and support usually ranges from 60 to 75% of overall life cycle costs. It is therefore imperative that products be designed with efficient and cost effective maintenance and support in mind. Maintainability is a product characteristic describing how efficient and cost effective the support of a complex system will be. One of the biggest challenges today is in injecting this discipline into the product development cycle at a time when it can actually make a difference in the overall support and maintenance cost of the system. In this paper, we present MTA, our tool for automated maintenance task analysis, and MTAs role within the product data lifecycle.

Derivational software engineering

Softwareexiststofulfillneedsthatindividualsandorga-nizations have. Software is a complex artifact that fulfillsthoseneedsbyprovidingservices,whileconsumingreason-ablelevelsofresourceandconformingtoconstraintsfromitscontext. Todevelopsoftware,developersbringtheirdesignknowledge to bear, translating their understanding of therequirements by adapting existing code and creating newspecialized code. Unfortunately, the design knowledge anditsrationaleareusuallynotcapturedinausefulform.Inourview,softwareshouldbetreatedasaformalcom-positionofrequirementspecifications,models,librarycom-ponents, design abstractions(e.g. system architecture pat-terns, design patterns, algorithm patterns, etc.), datatyperefinements, optimizations, andotherspecializedcodegen-erationtechniques. Wecallthiscompositionthe

Lightweight service architectures for space missions

Service architectures provide mechanisms for transactions and for the aggregation and composition of services, including monitoring and self-actuation within the architecture. In this paper we present an architecture appropriate for the computationally limited environment of space missions. We address the ever-increasing time and cost of developing and operating the information systems that space missions embody through the composition of services in this lightweight architecture. A lightweight, service-oriented architecture (SOA) can simplify system design and can support advanced computing concepts such as autonomic logistics and autonomic computing (Hartman, 2004). The unifying idea in a light weight service architecture (LWSA) is to abstract away idiosyncrasies of development, connection and use. Computational nodes in such an architecture are loosely coupled and inherit the advantages associated with networks in general including fault tolerance, reusability, scalability, performance and cost

The sixth annual knowledge-based software engineering conference (KBSE-91)

The 6th Annual Knowledge-Based Software Engineering Conference was held at the Sheraton University Inn and Conference Center in Syracuse, NY, from Sunday afternoon, September 22, through mid-day, Wednesday, September 25, 1991. This conference was sponsored by Rome Laboratory ((previously Rome Air Development Center) and held in cooperation with the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) and the American Association for Artificial Intelligence (AAAI).

Book review: Readings in Planning Edited by James Allen, James Hendler, and Austin Tate (Morgan Kaufmann, San Mateo, CA, 1990)

Readings In Planning (RIP) is another volume in a fine series of anthologies published by Morgan Kaufman. This volume is a collection of previously published (save for one) papers on the subfield of artificial intelligence (AI) dealing with planning and the action. This volume presents many of the historically important papers while providing a general framework for study in this field.